United Nations Concludes International Conference to Promote National, Regional Collaboration on Counter-Terrorism

United Nations Concludes International Conference to Promote

National, Regional Collaboration on Counter-Terrorism

RIYADH, 17 February — The United Nations Counter-Terrorism Centre (UNCCT) in partnership with the Government of Saudi Arabia held a two-day international conference on 16 and 17 February in Riyadh. The meeting brought together participants from national, regional and international counter-terrorism centres, think tanks and Government-sponsored entities and initiatives from all regions of the world. The purpose of the discussions was to promote synergies and share good practices to promote implementation of the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy and to develop an informed network of national, regional and global counter-terrorism centres.

“In the last decade, counter-terrorism institutions were founded all over the world,” Derek Plumbly, United Nations Special Coordinator for Lebanon, told participants. “These institutions have accumulated a wealth of knowledge and expertise. Their activities, however, are often conducted in relative isolation, are not known sufficiently outside their regions of activity and information sharing between them can be improved.”

During the discussions, particular emphasis was put on the role of the United Nations system, in general, and the United Nations Counter-Terrorism Implementation Task Force (CTITF) and the UNCCT, in particular, to build States’ capacity to prevent and combat terrorism. The participating entities were requested to complete a questionnaire describing their respective mandates and identify possible areas of cooperation with the UNCCT. Based on this information, the UNCCT will facilitate collaboration among the participating institutions. This will include the creation of a directory of specialized centres of excellence, training centres, resource institutions, think tanks and Government-sponsored entities and initiatives.

The UNCCT was established in 2011 within the CTITF Office, pursuant to the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy and General Assembly resolution A/RES/66/10. The UNCCT aims to support United Nations efforts to implement the Strategy at the national and regional levels, promote regional cooperation against terrorism and build Member States’ counter-terrorism capacities.

Background

In the 2006 United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy (document A/RES/60/288), Member States condemn terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, committed by whomever, wherever and for whatever purpose, as it constitutes one of the most serious threats to international peace and security. It specifically appeals to take advantage of the framework provided by relevant international, regional and subregional organizations to share best practices in counter-terrorism capacity-building, and to facilitate their contributions to the international community’s efforts in this area.

The Strategy takes a comprehensive approach to counter the scourge of terrorism. The Plan of Action attached to the Strategy is based on four pillars, including measures to address the conditions conducive to the spread of terrorism; to prevent and combat terrorism; to build States’ capacity to prevent and combat terrorism and to strengthen the role of the United Nations system in this regard; and to ensure respect for human rights and rule of law. These four pillars provide a broad-based and holistic structure for international efforts to counter terrorism.

One of the key strategic priorities of the UNCCT is to foster international counter-terrorism cooperation and the promotion of collaboration between national, regional and international counter-terrorism centres and initiatives. The international conference in Riyadh was part of this endeavour. The other main strategic priorities of the Centre are: national and regional counter-terrorism strategies; I-ACT (Integrated Assistance for Countering Terrorism); countering financing of terrorism; dialogue, understanding and countering the appeal of terrorism; human rights; and victims of terrorism.

Other key strategic priorities of the UNCCT announced by the Secretary-General on 3 June 2012 at the Second Advisory Board meeting in Jeddah include buttressing the implementation of all four of the Strategy’s pillars in a comprehensive and integrated manner through the development of national and regional Counter-Terrorism Strategy implementation plans and undertaking initiatives aimed at fostering international counter-terrorism cooperation. Through collaboration with CTITF working groups, the UNCCT also serves a critical role in building the capacity of Member States to strengthen their counter-terrorism capability.

In resolution A/RES/66/282 of 29 June 2012, which completed the third review of the Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy, the General Assembly encouraged Member States to enhance the important role that the United Nations, including the CTITF, plays, in coordination with other international, regional and subregional organizations, as appropriate, in facilitating and promoting coordination and coherence in the implementation of the Strategy at the national, regional and global levels and in providing assistance, upon request by Member States, especially in the area of capacity-building.

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